With just two business days remaining before the end of the negotiating period, two possible paths to a long-term deal with Kirk Cousins remain for the Redskins. Both are long shots, but that doesn't mean one or the other can't happen.

Remember, Cousins will be locked into a one-year franchise tag worth $24 million for the 2017 season unless Washington and the quarterback's representatives agree to a new contract before 4 p.m. on Monday. How can that be avoided?

Cousins blinks - The central part of this contract dispute centers on the major amount of leverage that Kirk Cousins holds in contract talks. If he doesn't sign long-term now, he will make $24 million in 2017, and should the Redskins elect to tag him again in 2018, he will make at least another $28 million. That's on top of the $20 million he made on the franchise tag in 2016. So, projecting out, Cousins will make at least $52 million in the next two years, and potentially much, much more should he hit free agency. There is, however, the allure of guaranteed money. NFL contracts are not guaranteed. Odds are the Redskins will make one legit contract offer, guaranteeing at least the $52 million but likely much more, before Monday's deadline. To actually pursue the free agency path, Cousins will have to look at an offer to make him a wildly rich man, and turn it down. it's possible, though not probable, as the clock approaches the final minutes of this negotiation, Cousins will want the very lucrative bird in hand rather than the millions upon millions possibly in the bush. Some analysts and former players think this exact scenario could play out. Outlook: Unlikely

Money talks - Throughout the contract process with Cousins, both in 2016 and now in 2017, the Redskins have shown a hesitancy to offer Cousins the top-of-the-market money his situation dictates. The argument over if Cousins is worth being the highest paid player in the NFL seems largely moot; scarcity at the QB position throughout the NFL will force the issue. For the Redskins to get a signature on the dotted line, team owner Dan Snyder must decide to get a deal done, regardless of the cost. What that might look like remains to be seen, but assuredly, there is a dollar figure that would get Kirk Cousins to sign with Washington beyond 2017. This could mean more than $75 million guaranteed, an outrageous figure, but the word for weeks has been that Snyder took a more active role in contract talks with the Cousins camp. Outlook: Still unlikely, but more possible than the first scenario.

If one of the above doesn't happen, and neither seems likely, Monday will probably be a slow news day.

Everything in the NFL feels like a powder keg, but the reality of Tuesday's opening of the franchise and transition tag period will play out as much more of a slow burn.

Few teams ever actually make moves on the opening day of the tag period, though the Dolphins bucked that conventional wisdom and used the non-exclusive franchise designation on wide receiver Jarvis Landry.

Astute Redskins fans know the tag system all too well. Landry can now sign a one-year, fully guaranteed contract with the Dolphins worth more than $16 million, the average of the top-five paid receivers in the NFL.

They can also trade Landry and the compensation discussion with a non-exclusive tag begins at two first-round draft picks, though it can eventually be settled for much less.

What, if anything, does Miami's move mean for the Redskins? Let's take a look:

Not gonna work here - Landry never really seemed like a great fit for the Redskins as a free agent, and that was before the franchise tag. He's a really good slot WR, but Washington already has that in Jamison Crowder. Whether or not Landry actually gets a deal done with the Dolphins or gets traded, it seems highly unlikely the Redskins are his next team.

"Spirit of the tag" - Miami putting the tag on Landry so early in the process signals that the team might be trying to trade him instead of actually trying to sign him. If that's the case, and plenty of people are suggesting just that, it would seem to be in contrast with the "spirit of the tag." The idea is that a franchise or transition tag is supposed to be used as a tool by an NFL franchise to get a long-term deal done with one of their own players facing free agency. Using the tag as a mechanism to pull of a trade seems very different. Why does any of this matter for Redskins fans? As reports emerged that Washington might look to use a tag on Kirk Cousins and work to trade him, the Cousins camp has made clear they would file a grievance against that technique. Why? Because it would violate the spirit of the tag. Well, it sure looks like Miami is doing the same thing, and as of now, nobody has complained. The situations aren't identical; few resemble the Redskins long, slow, awkward dance with Cousins. But it's certainly worth monitoring.

Wide Receiver$ - The Redskins could use a veteran wideout to help their young group of Crowder and Josh Doctson. Well, with Landry getting tagged, the price tag just went up. The player that seems to make the most sense in Washington would be Jaguars wideout Allen Robinson. Coming off a knee injury in 2017, some thought Robinson could be signed on a somewhat team-friendly deal. If Landry can get franchised after a season where he didn't even get to 1,000 yards receiving, any thought of a team-friendly deal for Robinson is dead. Make no mistake, Landry and Robinson are good players, but the ever-increasing NFL salary cap will make both young receivers very well paid.

Here is what you need to know on this Wednesday, February 21, 21 days before NFL free agency starts.

I’m out this week so I’ll be re-posting some of the best and most popular articles of the past few months. Some may have slightly dated information but the major points in the posts still stand. Thanks for reading, as always.

The Redskins appear to be set at center

Originally published 12/19/17

Chase Roullier might have been the Redskins’ fourth choice to play at center this year. But he could be snapping the ball for Washington for a long time.

Kory Lichtensteiger, the starter for the previous three years when healthy, retired. Veteran backup John Sullivan departed as a free agent. Spencer Long started six games this season before knee and quad problems pushed him to the sideline, elevating the rookie Roullier into the starting lineup.

The sixth-round pick started three games before breaking his right hand at some point during the game against the Saints. That’s his snapping hand and him finishing that game was an underrated act of courage this year. But he was out for three games before returning against the Cardinals on Sunday. Jay Gruden was pleased with his play.

“Chase did good. He did good,” said Gruden. “It was good to see him back in there. His snaps were outstanding and handled the calls and play well.”

That was good but standard praise. What was interesting was what he said next.

“I like Chase’s progress right now,” he said. “I think he is going to be a very good center for a long time here. It was a great pickup for us in the draft.”

It appears that you can at least pencil in Roullier as the 2018 starter at center, if not put him in with a Sharpie.

Where would this leave Long, who is slated to be a free agent in March? The Redskins could let him walk and go with the younger and cheaper Roullier. They also could sign him to be their starting left guard. That job has belonged to Shawn Lauvao. But Lauvao also is a pending free agent and he is 30 and he has missed large chunks of two of the last three seasons with injuries. When he missed the last 13 games of the 2015 season, Long went in at left guard and played well.

If that happens, that would give the Redskins a starting offensive line consisting entirely of players drafted by the team and with only Trent Williams over the age of 27 in Week 1 of 2018.

Regardless of what happens at left guard, it looks like Roullier will be the man in the middle for 2018 and beyond.